The Jey of Cooking is donating $1 to the American Heart Association for each heart-healthy recipe that is linked to her fundraiser, and I thought this was a fun way to spread the word on the importance of heart health, so I decided to post this particular recipe because it’s chock full of ingredients to keep your ticker in tip-top shape!
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States. In 2008, 616,000 people died of heart disease. Studies have shown that lowering blood pressure and cholesterol can reduce your risk of developing of heart disease, and this recipe perfectly fits into a dietary plan focused on doing both.
The chickpeas and celery add dietary fiber (and so will your tortilla, if you choose a whole wheat one), which is well-known for naturally lowering cholesterol and blood pressure. What you may not know about onions is that they stave off heart disease by promoting thinner blood and breaking up blood clots. They contain a powerful antioxidant called quercetin, which can help with high blood pressure. These benefits are most powerful when onions are eaten raw, as in this salad. And last but not least, the sunflower seeds add some heart-healthy poly- and monounsaturated fat into the mix, not to mention a tasty crunch!
Now that we know how healthy this recipe is, let’s talk about how it tastes. Eating foods for the sake of health is all well and good, but I’m a firm believer that those foods should also be full of flavor to make it an enjoyable experience. And this salad certainly fits the bill! It tastes very similar to tuna salad, and if you like tuna salad, I know you will like this as well. The beans make it creamy, with a lovely contrasting crunch from the celery, onions and sunflower seeds. You might be surprised how similar this tastes to tuna salad, and if you are following a vegan diet, this would be a great substitute.
Chickpea Salad Wraps
Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
½ cup celery, diced
¼ cup roasted, salted sunflower seeds
¼ cup mayonnaise, Miracle Whip or Vegenaise
3 tablespoons red onion, diced
3 tablespoons dill pickle, diced (or use dill relish)
2 tablespoons fresh dill, minced (or 2 teaspoons dried)
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced (or 1 teaspoon dried)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon reduced sodium soy sauce
½ teaspoon prepared mustard
Salt & pepper to taste
Place everything in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse until it is the texture you desire. I wanted mine to be slightly chunky and a little creamy, which took about 20 pulses. Serve in burrito-size tortillas, other wraps, or on bread as a sandwich.
Recipe source: adapted from Oh She Glows
*Sources for information on heart health: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, How Dietary Fiber Lowers Cholesterol, The Healing Power of Onions, Nutritional Power of Sunflower Seeds
And you know you want to see my First Day of Spring manicure (I did it yesterday):
I forgot the grass but still love it. Guess how many nail polishes I used on it? Every single one of these:
I know. I’m crazy. Big thanks to Suzie, who gifted me with a gazillion polishes, some pictured here. You know you’re feeding my problem, right Suze? ;)
Veronica's Cornucopia 
this looks absolutely delicious! I’m going to pin it! I love hummus, and chickpeas afterall, are really just hummus before it becomes hummus…so ya…I think this combo would rock! a nice choice for a filling meatless meal.
Of course I think your manicure is absolutely adorable!
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Haha, I like the way you think backwards! Can’t believe you’ve never tried chickpeas without turning them into hummus! Gotta do it.
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Dang–I don’t like raw onions! I mean, I LOVE onions, but they have to be cooked and a little softened (ideally caramelized) for my taste buds to sing. Hopefully some of those health benefits are still getting into my system . . .
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You still get benefits, just not as strong. Eat more of them, I guess, to get more benefit from cooked ones. :) Both my grandmothers (on each side) would eat onions with lunch and dinner, and sometimes breakfast. Just cut one up into wedges and have some as a side dish with their meals. One lived to be 94, and the other is still kickin in her 80s. So maybe there’s something to this onion business! :)
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The wrap looks tasty! I wonder why onions are good for us and so harmful to dogs? Not that your blog has anything to do with dogs…lol! I’ll have to see your manicure when I get home, I can see all the polishes though…wow! Can’t wait to see the finished product. I have the 4th one from the right on my piglets right now. At least I’m feeding a fun obsession :D
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Yeah, I hate they can’t have everything we can have, but I probably shouldn’t be sharing as much human food with Jess anyway (she’s a porker). I guess the chemicals in onions causes a dog’s blood cells to burst! Super scary. Just like with chocolate, smaller dogs are affected by less and a larger dog can have more without it being toxic. So glad I have a big dog, b/c she has managed to eat a lot of chocolate in her life. lol. Sorry about the picture-I used one I uploaded ot Pinterest, hoping you could see that but apparently that site is blocked form your work as well. Boo hoo. Thanks for feeding my addiction! haha
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Yes, pinterest and myspace are both blocked also…dangit! I’m glad I have big dogs too and Roxy is also porker. I was thinking about putting her on diet food actually! Your reply to Jenna made me think of my Grandpa eating onions the same way as your Grandparents, he passed when he was 93 I believe. So, they’re really could be something to it :)
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I put Jessie on diet food and it just made her want to eat more-lol! So I’ve put her back on regular food and am trying to keep the treats and human food to a minimum while regimenting her regular food (when she was younger we just kept her dish full and she ate only when hungry. Doesn’t work so well any more). We’ve been feeding her twice a day all her life, but now only once and she’s doing fine with it.
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I may have to do what you’re doing with Jessie…Roxy eats and eats and eats!! Haley, is like who cares? Lol! And now that I can see your spring manicure…I LOVE it…so cute V!!!
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we really are on the same wave-lenght lately. I am loving these healthy vegetarian treats you are posting lately. I just recently started to be attentive to the fiber content of the food I eat and I am falling more and more in love with vegetable-based dishes. this looks like a perfect lunch, thank you for sharing! do you think I could substitute the mayo with full-fat yoghurt?
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I think so, I have used Greek yogurt as a mayo substitute in tuna salad so I don’t see why you couldn’t do it in a mock tuna salad. :) I just add a bit of sweetener to cut the sour taste (I use stevia but sugar would be fine)
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oh and your nails are beautiful, of course :)
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Thank you!
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Cool! What a fun recipe! And speaking of fun, I can’t believe you can paint your own fingernails like that! I can hardly even get a pale pink to look good! :)
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Thanks, Chris, I feel the same way about your beautiful food photos!
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I am loving this. I love chickpeas and I think this is a perfect lunch. Mom is visiting this week and I think she would love it as well.
Thanks for sharing your artistic side with us. What other nail art can we expect? (Really, I can’t believe you do that yourself!)
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Aw, a ladies lunch. Have fun! After this one, NEVER AGAIN! It took way too much time. I’ll probably just paint them without art from now one.
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I also believe that food should be enjoyed, especially if it’s “healthy.” Otherwise no matter how nutrient-rich it is, you don’t digest it well enough!
And sweeet! You did those nails yourself? You truly have many talents!
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Thanks Sophia!
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These wraps looks like my ultimate lunchbox treat – simply gorgeous :D
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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OK, mom and I (she’s visiting) just had these for lunch! I told her to guess what it was and she said, “Chicken salad.” After that, I couldn’t get chicken salad out of my head. I love this. I used peperoncini peppers instead of relish and added no salt sunflower seeds and Dijon mustard (basically because I didn’t have the appropriate ingredients). This recipe is a keeper!!!!!!!
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That’s so cool that she thought there was meat in it! I’ll have to try it again and see if it tastes like chicken salad to me. I’m so glad you two enjoyed this. Yay!
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I’ve had this in my inbox ever since I saw the title and just haven’t gotten back to it until now. This looks amazing! I’m going to make it for sure.
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Wow, this looks really delicious! Love the chickpea salad – looks super tasty. Yum! :)
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Oh wow, this sounds incredible! I can’t wait to try add it to my (now boring) lunchtime lineup!
Thanks for participating in my event!
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